Speak Softly and Carry Some Big Words
by Owennumber1fan
Summary: Tired of always being foiled by WordGirl, the Butcher travels to another city to rob it to his heart's content. WordGirl & Huggy follow him, and soon find themselves befriending a young girl and her talking dog. Can they stop the Butcher without revealing their superhero identities?
1. A 'meat man' is loose

Disclaimer: All characters are not mine, and are the property of Dhx Media, Soup 2 Nuts, & PBS.

This is a great joy for me, to write a crossover featuring two of my favorite PBS shows. Also happy to see that _Martha Speaks _**finally** has a category on here.

Also, for those not familiar with _Martha Speaks, _I'll do you guys a favor and describe the characters for you.

* * *

Speak Softly and Carry Some Big Words

* * *

Wagstaff City was a normal town, although it had its' fair share of odd encounters. Yet none of them were anything compared to what they would soon experience, on a day that started like any other.

It was a seemingly normal day at the local bank and the teller had just finished helping a customer. "Next!" he called out.

The next customer came up to the window and looked to be a butcher, complete with cuts of meat hanging from his uniform.

"Can I help you sir?"

"Yes, I'd like all the cash from the vault please."

"Okay, let me just…I'm sorry, did you just say 'all the cash?'"

"What are you, deaf?" the man asked "yeah, gimme all the cash."

"Are you, robbing us?"

"I'm trying to, yeah, but youse ain't making it easy on me."

"Forgive me for saying this sir, but you seem very unprepared for a bank robbery," the teller told him "you have no weapon that I can see, so I see no reason why I shouldn't call the police right now."

"Oh you want a reason?" the man asked "here's your reason; sausage cyclone!"

Before the teller could realize what happened, sausages emerged from the man's hands, burying him in a pile. Naturally, this attracted the attention of the other customers in the bank.

"Okay, all of youse get back, or you'll get more of the same!" the man said, keeping his hands trained on them. He then hopped over the counter and approached the vault.

"Porkchop chop!" he shouted, causing porkchops to fly from his hands and eventually break through the vault door.

A few moments later, he emerged from the bank, sacks of money in hand, and ran off down the street.

"Oh man, that was great," he said happily "I robbified that place and WordGirl isn't anywhere to stop me. And that's just the beginning; there's a whole bunch of places in this city I can rob blind, and nobody's gonna stop me."

* * *

Ten minutes later, in a normal suburban house, a pair of figures were watching TV, having little clue how this mystery man would soon impact their lives.

One of the figures was a young 10-year old girl, with a mop of orange hair and dressed in a purple sweater and leggings, darker purple shoes, and an orange skirt with thick horizontal white stripes; her name was Helen Lorraine, and she was a typical average girl.

The other was her pet dog and faithful companion, who had yellow fur, with a white belly, paws, and tip of muzzle & tail, as well as brown ears, and was clad in a red collar. Her name was Martha.

"Isn't _Courageous Collie Carlo _brilliant?" Martha asked.

Oh yeah, the dog can talk; I probably should've mentioned that earlier.

"Yes, but have you noticed it tends to get repetitive after awhile?"Helen asked.

"Repetitive? Does that mean great? Because I agree!"

"No, if something is 'repetitive', it means that it repeats itself over and over again," Helen explained "the show always seems to have the same plot; Carlo has to rescue Bimmy or someone else from some danger, Carlo gets a reward, the end. I realize it's a show about a heroic dog, but it could use a change once in a while."

"I disagree, I think the show is brilliant."

"You're just saying that because you have a little crush on Carlo," Helen told her.

"What's your point?"

Before Helen could come up with one, the door to the house opened and another person rushed in.

He was a boy about Helen's age, with short blonde hair, wearing orange shorts, white sneakers, blue socks, and a light-blue t-shirt with darker blue shoulders & sleeves, and a tomato on the front. He was TD Kennelly, one of Helen's friends, known for his…well, you'll see.

"Oh my gosh, you guys aren't going to believe this!" TD said excitedly.

"What? What is it?" Helen asked.

"I just heard on the TV," TD said "that the bank was robbed earlier today!"

"That's terrible news," Helen told him.

"Yes, but that's not why I'm excited," TD explained "according to the news it was robbed by, get this, a meat man!"

"A meat man?" a skeptical Helen asked.

"That sounds like my kind of man!" Martha added, wagging her tail in excitement.

"You're saying a man made of meat robbed the bank?" Helen asked "what would he even need money for?"

"No, he wasn't made of meat," TD explained "he shot meat out of his hands."

"Oh, that makes much more sense," Helen replied sarcastically.

"I'm sensing you don't believe me," TD said.

"I believe you," Martha chimed in "but only because I like meat."

"It's just that, you tend to exaggerate and think things are something they're not," Helen told him "remember last week, when you thought you saw a zombie at the supermarket?"

"He was buying cereal!" TD shouted "although that did seem a bit strange, seeing how zombies eat brains."

"That's cause he wasn't a zombie, he was just an old man!" Helen told him.

"Okay, I'll admit I was wrong about the zombie thing, but I'm right about this!" TD told her "after all, it was on the news, and they never lie on the news."

Helen crossed her arms and glared at him. "Okay, maybe they lie on the news sometimes," TD admitted "but I know they're right about this."

"I'm sorry TD, but I just don't believe there's a man who shoots meat from his hands running around Wagstaff City," Helen told him.

"I wish there was," Martha said, sadly.

"Anyway, I need to take Martha for her walk; do you want to come?"

"No thanks, I need to monitor the news for more sightings of the meat man," TD replied "I'll prove he's real, and then I'll get him to grant me meat powers as well! See ya," he added, as he left.

"Man, I hope TD's right about that meat man," Martha said "I'd love to meet him."

"Yeah, well I don't think that's gonna happen," Helen said "come on, let's go for a walk."

* * *

And soon, they were on their walk, unaware they would be running into a new girl and her pet monkey, who were there on an important mission.

"So you are you liking Wagstaff City so far Bob?" Becky Botsford asked her monkey pal.

He responded with something in monkey chatter "we can sightsee later, right now we have to find the Butcher," she told him "I've heard that he already robbed a bank, and we need to figure out where he'll strike next."

Pardon me for asking, but how exactly did you get your parents to allow you to travel to another city all by yourself?

"Well it wasn't easy," Becky admitted "but I was able to use a cunning ruse."

* * *

_A few days earlier, at the Botsford house:_

"Okay mom & dad, Bob and I are going to a sleepover at Violet's house," Becky said "so If you need me, that's where I'll be, at Violet's house. Not someplace else."

"Okay, have fun Becky," her mom, Sally told her.

"Right, we totally trust you, since you told us where you'll be," her dad, Tim added.

"Okay, but if you need me, be sure to call Violet, because I will totally be at her house for hopefully only a day," Becky explained, while Bob simply facepalmed.

"Don't worry, we got it," Sally told her "you have fun with your little slumber party."

"And have fun doing…whatever girls do there, I guess," Tim added "I honestly have no idea."

* * *

Okay, but what happens if they call Violet to check on you?

"Already got that covered," Becky said "I told Violet we were playing a game where if my parents call, she's supposed to tell them I'm there."

And you're sure this will work?

"Look, I don't like deceiving my parents, or Violet, but I couldn't just tell them 'hey, I'll be gone for a few days 'cause the Butcher's lose in another city, and, since I'm WordGirl, I have to recapture him'," she said "this is just what comes with being a superhero."

Sounds terrible.

"It is, but such is the price I pay for fighting evil," Becky replied, "anyway Bob, perhaps we should talk to someone, see if they know anything."

While Becky & Bob discussed this, not too far away, Helen was walking down the street when Martha spotted the duo.

"Hey Helen, check it out" Martha said, as she headed down the street. Alongside her was a longer brown dog with a green collar; his name was Skits, and he was the family's other dog, though he lacked the ability to talk. "I don't think I've seen that girl around before."

"She must be new here," Helen guessed "come on, let's welcome her."

"We should try to find someone who lives here and have them give us a tour of the place," Becky told Bob, unaware of the girl and dogs heading near her "that might help us figure out where the Butcher is holed up. Now, who could we find to help us?"

"Hi there."

Becky turned and saw a redheaded girl and two dogs standing mere inches from her.

"Oh, hello," Becky said.

"I don't think we've seen you around Wagstaff City before," Helen replied.

"Oh…well, that's because…um," Becky paused, trying to develop a cover story "that's because my family just arrived here yesterday, yeah that's it. My dad is in town on some business, and that's the reason we're here; I mean, it's not like we're a little girl and her monkey that just came here by ourselves," she added, chuckling nervously, as Bob slapped his face with his hand.

"I never said you were," Helen replied.

"Um, yes of course," Becky told her "anyway, I'm Becky Botsford and this is my monkey, Bob" she added, before Bob chattered something in response.

"Bob says it's very nice to meet you," Becky explained.

"You can understand what the monkey says?" Martha asked, "I wish I could; I needed to get a bunch of animals to help me the last time."

"Okay, wait a minute; did your dog just…talk?" Becky asked.

"Oh yeah, Martha can speak," Helen replied nonchalantly, as if it was the most normal thing ever "I sometimes forget that not everyone knows that."

"O…kay," Becky replied, a bit unnerved.

"Hey, since you're new here, maybe you'd like a tour of the city," Helen suggested.

"That would be great!" Becky said "you know, because I want to see more of the city, since I'll be here for awhile."

"Then come on," Helen said, as she and her dogs led the way down the street.

"This is perfect," Becky whispered to Bob "with her help, we'll comb every corner of this city and hopefully catch the Butcher before he strikes again." Bob chattered something in reply; "fine, you can get some souvenirs, now come on!"

* * *

In the next chapter, Becky has a sleepover at Helen's house, and the people of Wagstaff City are introduced to WordGirl & Captain Huggy Face.


	2. Part of the family

You can probably just skip this chapter, because it's pretty boring and not much happens.

* * *

"And over here is the Squiggy Piggy mart," Helen said, gesturing to the small grocery.

"I've noticed you have quite a few businesses in this city," Becky replied.

"Sure, that's not unusual."

"No, but it might make it a better target for thieves," Becky explained "if a crook was to come here, he'd have his pick of places to rob."

"I don't think that'll be a problem," Helen told her "we've had a few problems with crime, but never anything major. Why are you so interested in places being robbed?"

"Just want to make sure this is a safe city," Becky explained, "say, you don't have a butcher's shop around here anywhere, do you?"

"We sure do!" Martha said happily "we'll be happy to take you there right now!"

"Martha loves going there because Carl always gives her free samples," Helen explained "but we don't have time right now, we should be getting home for dinner."

"Ooh, I love dinner!" Martha said "even more than I love lunch." Skits barked something in agreement.

"Would you like to come by our house?" Helen asked.

"I'd have to ask my dad, but I'm sure he'd be okay with it," Becky told her.

* * *

So, a few minutes later, the kids returned to the average looking house. Inside, working in the kitchen was a dark skinned woman with a purple sweater, red flats & a skirt covered with transparent white flowers. Playing on the floor was a young baby of the same skin tone, wearing a white shirt with horizontal blue stripes and an orange jumper.

"Mom, we're home!" Helen called.

"I'm in the kitchen," Mariella called back.

After everyone walked in, Mariella tore herself away from her work to look at them. "Hola Helen," she said, "oh, and who are your new friends?"

"This is Becky Botsford, and her monkey Bob," Helen explained "they're going to be in town for a while, so Martha and I were showing them around."

"Es un placer conocerte; it is nice to meet you Becky," Mariella told her "would you like to stay for dinner? Provided it is okay with your parents, of course."

"Oh, I really don't think that I…" Becky began, until Bob tugged on her sleeve and chattered something at her "on second thought, we will join you for dinner after all."

"And this is my little brother Jake," Helen said, introducing the baby "say hi to Becky & Bob Jakey."

"Key" Jake replied.

"He's still growing," Helen told her "hey, want to see my room?"

"Sure."

* * *

"Nice room," Becky commented "um, I don't want to impose, but, would it be okay if I slept over here tonight?"

"Wouldn't you rather spend the night with your family?"

"Yeah, well my bed hasn't quite been unpacked yet", Becky began "and there's just so much going on over at my place. Besides, you and Martha are the first friends I've made since I came here," Becky explained, until she heard some barks from nearby "and you too Skits."

"I'd be happy to have you, but I'll have to ask my parents," Helen told her.

"I have a question; where's the monkey gonna sleep?" Martha asked.

"Bob can sleep with me," Becky explained.

"As long as he isn't sleeping on the bed," Martha told her "that's kind of my spot."

"Martha, you should be nice for our guest," Helen scolded.

Bob chattered something in response; "what'd he say?" Helen asked.

"He was wondering what you were having for dinner."

"I like the way the monkey thinks!" Martha replied.

* * *

"This is very good Mrs. Lorraine," Becky said, after she and Bob sat down for dinner.

"Gracias, I am glad you enjoy it," Mariella replied.

"I can't believe we're actually having dinner with a monkey!" exclaimed a middle-aged man with glasses, a flowery yellow shirt and brown trousers. That was Helen's dad, Daniel, or Danny; "is that neat or what?"

"Oh Bob eats at the table at our house all the time," Becky explained.

"Speaking of your familia, when do we get to meet them?" Mariella asked "I would like very much to talk with your mother."

"Oh, they're gonna be super busy the whole time we're here," Becky said "I doubt they'll have any time to see people, or really anything outside of work."

"And what sort of work do they do?" Mariella asked.

"You know, this and that," Becky said, "it's really not important, so let's not worry about it. So…anybody hear anything about any robberies?"

"Come to think of it, there was something on the news today about the bank being robbed by someone dressed as a butcher," Danny replied "but I thought it was a joke or something."

"TD said the same thing this morning," Helen added "although he said it was some guy that could shoot meat out of his hands," she added, causing Becky to nearly choke on her food. "Becky, are you all right?"

"Oh yes... just fine," Becky replied nervously "could you excuse me, I need to use the little girls room." "Come on Bob" she added, grabbing the monkey and heading down the hall.

"Does she know where the bathroom is?" Danny asked his family.

* * *

Once in the bathroom, Bob began to chatter angrily at his owner.

"I'm sorry I pulled you away from dinner, but we need to focus," Becky told him "the Butcher's already struck once and he's sure to do so again; tomorrow, we'll have them take us to that butcher shop, then we'll nail him and be on our way home."

Bob chattered a reply. "No, I don't like deceiving them, but you know we can't tell them the truth, think how they'd react." Bob chattered something else. "I'd love to stay and get to know them better too, but we have a mission. Okay, how about this; after we nab the Butcher, we'll spend some more time with them."

Bob clapped in reply.

"Good, now let's get back to dinner; I don't want them to suspect that anything's wrong."

* * *

"Are you okay?" Helen asked Becky later, as both girls got ready for bed "I noticed you were in the bathroom for a while there."

"Oh yeah, sometimes you just gotta go, right?" Becky replied, although Helen noticed she seemed to be acting nervously "hey, do you think we could visit that butcher's shop you mentioned tomorrow? My...um, dad needs some meat."

"Sure, I guess," Helen said, a bit wary, "I was hoping I could introduce you to the rest of my friends though."

"There'll be plenty of time for that, after the butcher's shop," Becky told her "it is imperative that we go there first."

"Imperative?"

"It means 'not to be avoided or evaded'; when I say that it's imperative that we go, I mean that we absolutely must go there."

"Your dad must really need his meat."

"Her dad has good taste," Martha added.

"Yeah, well goodnight," Becky said, pretending to drift off to sleep.

_Man, I can't believe how easy this is going to be, _she thought _tomorrow, I'll apprehend the Butcher, then spend a little more time with my new friend Helen. It almost seems too easy. Nah!_

* * *

Unfortunately, things don't always run that smoothly, as WordGirl will soon learn. Next time, the butcher shop turns out to be bust, but WordGirl encounters her old foe anyway. Plus, someone gets suspicious of Becky's true motives.


	3. Battling the Butcher

The next morning, Becky sped through breakfast (although Bob didn't) so she and Helen could head down to the local butcher shop. Naturally, Martha & Skits accompanied them. As they headed down the street, a girl met up with them

"Hey Helen," said the girl, who had thick glasses, freckles, and blonde hair tied into a small ponytail. She wore a light-green t-shirt with a thick purple stripe around the chest and stripes on the hems of the sleeves, brown shorts and red & white shoes.

"Oh, hey Alice," Helen greeted her.

"Who are your friends?"

"This is Becky Botsford and her monkey Bob. Becky, Bob, this is my friend Alice Boxwood."

"Nice to meet you Becky," Alice said, shaking her hand "and you too Bob; you don't meet too many monkeys in Wagstaff city."

"Are we gonna stand here and admire the monkey, or are we gonna get some meat?" Martha asked impatiently.

"We're on our way to Carl's, Becky needs to go there to get some meat for her dad," Helen explained "wanna come with us?"

"Okay," Alice said "anything to get out of the house. Ronald is being more annoying than usual, if that's possible."

"Ronald is Alice's older brother," Helen explained to the newcomers.

"Man, sometimes I think brothers exist just to torment their sisters, you know?" Alice asked.

"I hear you," Becky replied "my brother TJ can be a real pain sometimes."

"Finally, somebody agrees with me," Alice said. Not long after, the group reached the butcher's shop.

"Oh boy, I wonder what Carl will be giving out today!" Martha said happily, while Skits barked his approval.

"Come on, you'll like Carl," Helen gestured to Becky to follow her in.

"Okay, let's…oh my gosh, what is that?" Becky asked in an emotionless voice, pointing at nothing.

"What? What is it?" Alice asked.

"That thing over there," Becky replied.

"I don't see anything," Helen told her "are you sure that…hey, she's gone!"

* * *

In the alley next to the shop, Becky turned to her monkey pal.

"I hated to do that, but we have to nab the Butcher," she told him "so let's do it; Word up!"

Transforming into WordGirl & Captain Huggy Face, the pair of heroes crashed through the door that led into the alley.

"Give up the Butch…er?" WordGirl said, upon noticing that her foe wasn't there.

"Oh, um, hello," Carl said "can I help you with something?"

"Yeah, um, this is gonna sound strange, but there isn't another butcher working here is there?" WordGirl asked "big guy, wears white, misuses words."

"No, I'm the only butcher in the city," Carl replied "who are you anyway?'

"Um…gotta go, bye!" WordGirl said, as she zoomed out of the shop with Huggy in tow. A few moments later, the two, now transformed back into their normal selves, rejoined Helen and the others.

"There you are!" Helen said "where did you go?"

"Oh, I thought I saw a flying saucer," Becky lied "turns out it was just a weather balloon" she added, laughing nervously.

"Well, now that you're back, we can pick up that meat."

"Yeah, you know," Becky began "I just remembered; turns out my dad didn't want me to get meat, he wanted me to 'meet' him later. It's funny, because both words sound the same, right?"

Everyone looked at her, while Bob merely face palmed.

"Yesterday you said going here was 'imperative', and now you're changing your mind?" a suspicious Helen asked.

"I'm sorry, like I said, I mistook one word for another. It could happen to anyone," Becky explained.

"I'm confused are we getting meat or not?" Martha asked.

"I'll take you guys in to get something" Helen told them, as she Alice & the dogs headed inside.

"Whew! That was a close one," Becky said "I just can't believe that the Butcher wasn't here. I mean, it's a butcher's shop, that's where he usually hangs out."

Bob said something in monkey; "you're right Bob, we need to comb this city to find the Butcher before he strikes again. I just wish I knew where to start."

* * *

Eventually, Helen & Alice left Carl's and headed home. As they passed by Arfin's Jewelry, they noticed a crowd of people nearby.

"I wonder what's going on," Helen commented.

"A sale maybe?" Alice asked.

The girls snuck over for a closer look, just as a man in white emerged from the store, a large amount of jewelry in his hands.

"Okay, back off all of youse!" he said, "I'm taking these jewels and getting out of here."

"Is that…?" Alice began.

"It's the guy TD was talking about," Helen answered for her "who knew he was right?"

"I guess he had to be correct at least once," Alice pointed out.

"Hey, I'm just gonna go and phone the police, so... be right back," Becky said, before she grabbed Bob and ran off.

"Man, this jewelry store is great," the Butcher commented as he ran off "hardly any security and no snooty clerk guy to talk down to me. I am really liking this place."

"Too bad, because you're leaving right now!" came a familiar voice.

"WordGirl!" the Butcher exclaimed, seeing her and Captain Huggy Face in front of him "how'd you find me?"

"It wasn't hard," WordGirl replied "you shouldn't have mentioned where you were going in that note you left at your old hideout."

"I wanted to make sure I would still get my magazines."

"Well you'll have plenty of time to read magazines… in jail!"

"Guess again, WordGirl. Sausage cyclone!"

Huggy effortlessly ate the barrage of sausages, as the crowd watched on, impressed.

"What is this?" one person asked.

"I think it's a publicity stunt for a new TV show," another commented "although the dialogue is certainly cliched."

"The villain is an interesting touch," said another citizen "and the way he shoots meat from his hands looks so real."

"But are we really supposed to buy a young girl and a monkey as heroes?" said another man "they look pretty inexperienced to me."

"I'll have you know I've been doing this for a while now," WordGirl replied "now please citizens, stand aside and let me handle this."

"See, like I said, clichéd."

"Okay Butcher, you should know that Huggy can eat anything you can throw at us, so why you don't just give up and make it easy on yourself."

"Forget it WordGirl!" Butcher replied "I didn't come all this way to rob this town to let you stopper me."

"I think you mean 'stop' you," WordGirl corrected "and that's exactly what I'm going to do!"

"Hey, what channel is this show going to be on?" someone from the crowd shouted.

"This isn't a show, this is really happening!" WordGirl explained, "now please, let me do my…"

"Hamalanche!"

The distraction from the crowd allowed the Butcher to get the drop on WordGirl, burying her under a pile of ham and allowing him to take his leave.

"I forgot about that move," WordGirl muttered from under the pile of pork.

"Well that was anti-climactic," said another citizen "the bad guy buries the heroine in ham and just gets away?"

"Maybe they're filming the end later," another suggested.

WordGirl finally emerged from the ham pile, only to discover that the Butcher had fled in the confusion.

"Darn it!" she exclaimed, then turned to the crowd "look, I know you think this is all part of a TV show, but it's not; the Butcher is a dangerous criminal who plans to rob your city. But I can assure you that I will capture him before he can cause any more trouble. Now, if you'll excuse me" she added, before zooming off, leaving the crowd murmuring in excitement.

"Wow that was awesome!" Alice exclaimed "a real life superhero in Wagstaff City."

"I don't know, the whole thing seems a little hard to believe," Helen replied. Of course, she didn't want to mention that the heroine seemed oddly familiar…

"That meat looked pretty real," Martha said "maybe Skits and I should test it and see."

"Nice try."

"Hey everybody, did I miss anything?" Becky asked, having transformed back.

"Only the greatest thing ever!" Alice said "a female hero called WordGirl was fighting this butcher guy and she nearly had him, but then he dumped ham on her and got away."

"Wow! I'm sorry I missed that," Becky said in mock excitement "anyway, I couldn't get a hold of the police."

"That's okay, I'm sure they'll catch the guy," Helen said "come on, we'd better get back home."

"I still smell ham," Martha commented as they headed back. Becky sniffed her clothes and realized the scent was coming from her, and she knew what needed to be done.

* * *

Later, back the Lorraine house, Becky & Bob emerged from the shower.

"Okay, I think we finally got the ham smell off," she said "now we can concentrate on finding the Butcher. Problem is, there are probably lots of places here he could be holed up in, and I have no way of finding him until he strikes again."

Bob chattered something at her "yes, it was risky exposing myself to the people like that, but I had no choice. Anyway, I'm sure it's not going to be a problem," she added, as they headed down the hall towards Helen's room. When they entered, Becky noticed the redhead standing near her bed, her arms crossed angrily.

"Did you have a good shower, Becky?" Helen asked, before pointing at her "or should I call you…WordGirl!"

* * *

Looks like Becky's secret may be in jeopardy; how will she get out of this one? In the next chapter, Becky continues her search for the Butcher, but runs into a little problem when WordGirl becomes the city's newest celebrity.


	4. Secret Revealed

"Wordgirl, me?" Becky asked nervously "I'm sorry, but I think you've…"

"Don't bother trying to hide it, I know you're her!" Helen said angrily "when were you planning on telling me, huh? Or do you lie to all your friends?"

"Look, I'm not WordGirl."

"Stop lying," Helen told her.

Becky looked down and sighed "what was it that gave me away? The fact that my face & voice are exactly the same?"

"Actually, it was that you're the only kid in town I know who has a monkey," Helen explained "although I'm surprised no one noticed that face & voice thing."

"Also, you smell like ham," Martha added.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"I knew I smelled ham, even after we left the crime scene, but I couldn't figure out why," Martha explained "at first, I thought it was because I was hungry for some. But then, I realized the scent was coming from someone close by; so, I sniffed your clothes and they were covered with the scent of that delicious meat."

"Which means you must have been under the pile of ham, just like WordGirl was," Helen added "that's the only way you could've gotten the ham smell on your clothes."

"Wow, you dogs are good."

"I can't believe you lied to me!" Helen interrupted "I let you stay in my house while you're in town, and this is how you repay me? Did your family even move here? Do you even have a family? How much of what you told me is the truth?"

"Okay, yes, I didn't move here," Becky said "and yes, I didn't tell you I was WordGirl; but if I said 'oh, by the way, I'm a superhero from out of town who's here to capture a villain that shoots meat from his hands', would you have believed me?"

"I guess not," Helen replied "but how did all this start?"

"Well, it all began many years ago on a distant planet called Lexicon…"

"No, I mean all this stuff with the Butcher."

"Oh right," Becky replied "the Butcher is one of my enemies from where I live. He's come here to plunder your town to his heart's content, but I'm not going to let him."

"Plunder?" Martha asked.

"Plunder; it means to rob or steal by force," Becky explained "if someone plunders something, it means they take it from you by excessive means."

"Let us help you," Helen said.

"I appreciate it, but it's too dangerous," Becky told her.

"Look, Martha and I know Wagstaff city inside & out," Helen told her "if you want to find where the Butcher's hiding, we're the ones who can help."

"Plus we have some experience dealing with criminals," Martha added "I was the one who helped put Louie Kablooie and Jimmy "Gimmie" Moore in prison, and I did help capture those spies that were trying to steal Granny's soup recipe."

"Okay, I don't know what any of that means, but maybe you can be of help to me," Becky said "but you have to promise me you won't tell anyone else about my secret identity. If word got out, it could severely hinder my ability to do my job."

"Okay, but I don't feel right lying to my parents," Helen told her.

"I'm not exactly thrilled about it either," Becky added "but it comes with the territory."

* * *

Soon the four were sitting in Helen's living room, looking over a map of Wagstaff City.

"There are a number of places the Butcher could be hiding," Becky lamented "it could take a while for me to check all of them."

"That's what you've got us for," Helen told her "Martha and I would be glad to search a few potential hiding spots for you."

"We would?" Martha asked.

"All right, but if you find the Butcher, don't confront him, he's very dangerous."

"He shoots meat from his hands, how dangerous can he be?"

"Don't underestimate him," Becky warned "anyway, I think we'll check out this Flea Island place first. It's not where the Butcher would typically be, but then he's not where I thought he'd typically be anyway. Time to get a move on, we need…oh man, it's time for _Pretty Princess and Magic Pony Power Hour!" _

"The what?" Helen & Martha both asked.

"Um, we can search later, my show's on," Becky said, as Bob groaned. Becky ignored him and plopped on the couch, then flipped through the channels until she found her favorite program "ahh, there it is."

"Oh Magic Pony, we must stop Count Cloudy from ruining the annual rose festival," Pretty Princess said.

"You actually watch this?" Helen wondered.

"Shh, not during the show" Becky said.

"We interrupt _the Pretty Princess and Magical Pony Power Hour _for a special bulletin," came a voice from the TV.

"Oh come on!" Becky yelled "what could possibly be so important that it has to…"

"Does Wagstaff City have its' own superhero?" asked a female voice from the TV.

"Uh-oh," Becky said nervously.

"Earlier today, a young girl calling herself 'WordGirl' battled a butcher who could apparently control meat to come from his hands," said the reporter "while many think it was all a publicity stunt for a new TV show, others believe a genuine superhero may have come to visit us. Of course, such things are nonsense. We now return you to your pretty princess and pony program."

"Oh this is just perfect!" Becky said.

"Don't worry, it's like they said, most people probably think it was part of some TV series," Helen told her "I'm sure this won't be a problem."

"You're right," Becky replied "I just need to… hold on, show's back on."

* * *

Later that day, Alice came over to visit, so the girls sat down to play a board game; Becky had decided to suspend the search for the Butcher until she could narrow down his location. And, truth be told, she was really enjoying her time in Wagstaff City.

_It's really too bad I have to go home once this is over, _she thought _everyone here is so nice, and they know almost as many words as I do. I know it seems weird for me to say this, but I hope I don't catch the Butcher for a while. _

"So did you guys see that thing on the news about WordGirl?" Alice asked, rousing Becky from her thoughts.

"Yeah, weird right?" Helen replied, glancing over to see how Becky was reacting.

"Well, you and I were both there, we saw what happened," Alice said "I know it was most likely for a show, but I wish there really was a superhero in town. Wouldn't that be neat?"

"I guess, but I think if there was a hero, she'd probably want her privacy," Helen told her "maybe she's very secretive about her identity and wouldn't want people to bother her."

"Yeah, good point," Alice admitted "okay, your move."

"Helen, did you see the news today?"

This question was asked by a girl who had just entered the room while the others were playing. Becky noticed she had black curly hair, a pink t-shirt and shoes and a blue skirt with white flowers on the hem. The girl also had the same dark skin as Helen's mother & brother.

"Oh hi Carolina, when did you get here?" Helen asked.

"En este momento; just now," Carolina replied "did you watch the news today?"

"Some of it, why?"

"There was a report that our city may have un superheroe; a superhero," Carolina told her.

"I'm pretty sure that wasn't real," Helen replied.

"Even so, it's big news and I want to cover it for my paper," Carolina told her, before noticing Becky "who's the new girl?"

"Oh I'm sorry, this is Becky Botsford," Helen began "Becky, this is my cousin, Carolina."

"Nice to meet you," Becky said, shaking the girl's hand.

"Likewise," Carolina replied "so cuz, are your going to help me with my story?"

"I'm sorry, but I'm kind of busy here," Helen told her "personally, I don't think there's anything to this story; you should just drop it."

"No way! A reporter never gives up when they smell a good story, and this one smells like a winner!" Carolina said, determined "well, if you won't help me, I'll just get TD to do it; he loves stuff like this. Adios" she added, as she walked out.

"You think she's gonna find anything?" Alice asked.

"I doubt it," Helen told her "but you know how stubborn Carolina can be."

"Plus the whole thing is incredibly silly," Becky added nervously "I mean, a superhero and a guy that shoots meat? Pretty farfetched if you ask me; yeah, no way anything like that could ever be true, nope, no possible way."

"Okay Becky, I think you made your point," Helen told her.

* * *

Later in the day, after Alice went home, Becky, Helen and their pets gathered in the kitchen to discuss their next move.

"It's way too late in the day to head to Flea Island now," Helen told Becky as she dug through the cabinets "we'll have to go first thing tomorrow," she added, producing a can of alphabet soup.

"It might just be better to let the Butcher make the next move," Becky countered. Bob responded by chattering something at her.

"I don't like it either Bob, but it would take us too long to search everywhere, even with extra help," Becky told him "better that we wait for the Butcher to strike again, then either stop him, or follow him back to wherever he's hiding and stop his crime spree for good."

"If you feel that's the right choice," Helen said, as she used the can opener on a can of soup "you are the expert here."

"Are we having soup for dinner?" Becky asked.

"Oh no, that's just for Martha," Helen told her, pouring the contents of the can in Martha's bowl.

"You feed your dog soup?"

"That's what makes her talk," Helen explained "we're not exactly sure why it does, but it just does."

"No offense, but that is the silliest thing I've ever heard," Becky replied.

"Sillier than a word defining superhero from another planet with a monkey sidekick?"

"Touché."

* * *

In the next chapter, our heroes begin to zero in on the Butcher, but can they stop him before he robs again?


End file.
